Seven seats are available for the Brock University Students Administrative Council/Senate byelections later this month. Campaigning will begin Oct. 20, and voting will take place from Oct. 28-30. Results will be announced Oct. 30 at 9:30 p.m.

James Gardner of St. Catharines is the 2014 winner of the Lou Cahill Scholarship in Communications awarded by Brock University. The $1,250 scholarship is awarded to a third-year student studying in a four-year communications program in Brock’s Department of Communication, Popular Culture and Film. Scholarship recipients are recognized for academic excellence, community involvement and participation in charitable activities.

Brock University has been awarded a UNESCO Chair that will help to build capacity in sustainability science research and its practical transfer to society. The chair, which will operate under the theme “Community Sustainability: From Local to Global,” is one of more than 811 UNESCO Chairs worldwide and a network of 18 in Canada facilitated by the Canadian Commission for UNESCO. The Brock chair is the only one in Canada located at an institution situated within a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.

At Thursday’s two Convocation ceremonies for the Faculty of Social Sciences, more than 900 Brock students received their degrees and certificates from the University. Thursday’s ceremonies marked the third day of this week’s five-day Convocation celebrations. Brock Chancellor Ned Goodman made his first Convocation appearance of the week welcoming guests and their families.

Yesterday, Brock unveiled a new plaque recognizing the significant contributions that local union members made to the University’s Founding Fund from 1965 to 1970. The plaque, which is located on the 300-level of Mackenzie Chown where blocks B and C meet, was proposed by Brock’s Centre for Labour Studies as part of the University’s 50th anniversary celebrations.